national language
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national language
The official or predominant language of a country or a particular region.
Obwohl viele Leute Englisch sprechen, ist Spanisch die Landessprache in Argentinien.
Although many people speak English, Spanish is the national language in Argentina.
The word consists of 'Land' (country), in the genitive form 'Landes', and 'Sprache' (language). So it literally means 'the language of the country.'
Bei Reisen ist es immer hilfreich, ein paar Worte in der Landessprache zu kennen.
When traveling, it is always helpful to know a few words in the national language.
A typical sentence structure is: '[Language] ist die Landessprache in [country].' ([Language] is the national language in [country].) or 'Die Landessprache von [country] ist [language].' (The national language of [country] is [language].)
Portugiesisch ist die offizielle Landessprache in Brasilien.
Portuguese is the official national language in Brazil.
Common verbs in this context are 'sprechen' (to speak), 'lernen' (to learn), 'verstehen' (to understand), and 'beherrschen' (to master). The adjective 'offiziell' (official) is also often used.
Er hat die Landessprache in nur einem Jahr gelernt.
He learned the national language in just one year.
native language
'Muttersprache' and 'Landessprache' can sometimes be the same language, but they do not mean the same thing. A 'Muttersprache' is the language a person first learned as a child. So it belongs to a person's personal history. A 'Landessprache' is the language that is spoken officially or primarily in a country or region. Learners often confuse the words because, for example, German can be someone's native language and is also the national language in Germany. But a person can live in a country whose national language is not their native language.
Vor der Reise lernt Tom ein paar Sätze in der Landessprache.
Before the trip, Tom learns a few sentences in the national language.
Arabisch ist ihre Muttersprache, aber sie spricht auch sehr gut Deutsch.
Arabic is her native language, but she also speaks German very well.